PDKI Condemns Turkey’s Attack On Afrin

In a statement, PDKI condemns Turkey’s attack on the Kurdish city of Afrin in western (Syrian) Kurdistan. PDKI calls on the international community not to remain silent and to take action in order to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Syrian Kurdistan.

Turkey has for some time threatened to attack Syrian Kurdistan. It began with the attack on Afrin. In addition to the shelling and airstrikes against Afrin, Turkey has threatened to undertake a ground invasion. PDKI warns of an impending humanitarian crisis if Turkey’s military aggression continues.

PDKI also reminds the international community of the pivotal role the Kurdish people plays in fighting terrorism in the Middle East.

However, now that the war against the Islamic state, or IS, is winding down, the states occupying Kurdistan collaborate to attack the Kurdish people in the different parts of Kurdistan. It began with the attack against Kirkuk by Iraqi militias and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards. Now, with the attack on Afrin, Turkey has demonstrated that it cannot even tolerate Kurdish self-rule within the boundaries of another country.

Unfortunately, the international community has remained silent in the face of these attacks against the Kurdish people.

PDKI calls on the international community not to remain silent in the face of repeated acts of military aggression against the Kurdish people by the states occupying different parts of Kurdistan.

Even if democracy and human rights no longer concern the international community, the Western powers should at least consider the fact that the Kurds have been their most important allies in the struggle against terrorism in the Middle East.